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Thursday, September 24, 2009

Ina Garten's "Beatty's Cake" for the Barefoot Bloggers

This is a very true story. Many years (maybe decades) ago, I was a full-fledged chocoholic. A friend of mine, who is a hypnotherapist, said that she could help me to control of my insatiable appetite for any kind of chocolate. I won't get into the details of my session, nor the suggestion she gave my subconscious mind that would create an aversion to chocolate (you don't want to know...). All I can tell you is that, since then, I only have an occasional craving for chocolate! Even then, a bag of chocolate can last for months and months, untouched, in my cupboard. Crazier, still, is that I'd rather eat a Cadbury Fruit & Nuts bar or See's chocolates, in lieu of Godiva Belgian chocolate-- it's just too rich for me!

So, here I was faced with a Barefoot Bloggers challenge of baking another Ina Garten cake recipe as the second of this month's chosen recipes! Mary of Passionate Perseverance chose "Beatty's Cake" (found in Barefoot Contessa at Home) --a rich chocolate cake with chocolate frosting... a combination that I'm not particularly wild about (I like chocolate and white frosting). However, my husband likes it and I was sure that I could find some takers once I had finished this cake. I just enjoy baking, so I was up for trying Mary's choice.

I liked the idea of using oil and buttermilk, instead of butter, which I presumed would give the cake a lot of moisture. Besides, the frosting consisted of two sticks of butter! I also like the idea of using coffee to enhance the taste of chocolate. I was going to be a good sport, despite my lukewarm love of chocolate cake and chocolate frosting-- so I decided to make Ina's recipe exactly as is,since this recipe has stellar reviews. Like Ina, I try my best to buy the best quality ingredients:

One of my golden rules in baking is to measure and prepare all of my ingredients. Baking is science, so it can ruin the whole recipe if you discover you're missing a vital ingredient. I make a point of bringing my eggs and butter to room temp. Depending on the weather, that can take 30 minutes, to an hour.

Sometimes, I'm lazy and I don't sift my dry ingredients. This time, I made a point of it...

...because Dutch Cocoa can clump up. I was also reminded that kosher salt doesn't sift well...duh!

One of my blogger buddies, Muneeba, just got a Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer for her birthday. She's in for a treat! Mixing the batter, for this recipe, didn't even make me break a sweat. I simply mixed in the wet with the dry and the batter was ready in no time at all.

I make a point of checking my cake about 5 minutes sooner than the recipe calls for, to reduce the risk of it being over-baked and dry. Ina's instructions say to bake this recipe between 30-40 minutes. I used 2 9-inch pans and these were ready in 25 minutes! Heed my warning, because my oven is calibrated to be pretty accurate! I allowed the cakes to cool for 30 minutes, per the instructions, and then put them on a cooling rack.

It's time to make the frosting-- I can finally use the espresso powder that I order from King Arthur. It's pretty cool stuff. I like how fine the powder is, compared to instant coffee. I've never made a buttercream frosting with an egg yolk, so I bravely went ahead--wondering if a raw egg would freak out anyone. I decided not to say anything.

The butter is whipped for about 3 minutes-- there's lots of air going in this!

Ina calls for 6 ounces of "good semi-sweet chocolate". Well, Ina, Ghirardelli semi-sweet chips is as good as it's gonna get! I started to do the double boiler thing...then I thought, heck-- what are microwaves for? 90 seconds later... perfectly melted chocolate. Easy, eh?

The only reason I'm publishing the photo of the egg yolk that is being added to the frosting is that I love the color. You cannot compare farm fresh free-range egg yolks with the commercial variety. I just love these eggs!

In goes the powdered sugar and then the melted and cooled chocolate. I took a taste. Not bad! I do like chocolate chip cookies, so I do like semi-sweet chocolate.

So, what happened here? The unspeakable-- some of the cake did not release. I plead the fifth.

The beauty of icing is that it's like putty-- you can fill in mistakes and nobody will be the wiser. Except for you, but it's our little secret. I have to say, this frosting is very silky and very easy to work with.

So, here's the big "TA DA". Nothing exciting to look at, its it? I pondered how to jazz it up... more chocolate fru-fru candies? No! Roses from my garden? Nah.... It's a cake and I made it from scratch! That's good enough for me.

Craig eagerly waited for a slice of this cake, by eating a smaller portion of dinner. He prompty set aside a slice to take to work, and one for his co-worker who also has a sweet tooth for chocolate.

Does this make you chocoholics quiver with longing?

You can tell me to stop anytime...look away! I admit, tthis is an excellent chocolate cake. You cannot taste the coffee-- in fact, the coffee really brings out the chocolate flavor loud and clear. The frosting is very creamy, and delicious. I ate one small slice with vanilla ice cream-- to me, that softens the chocolate for my taste buds.I would definitely make this cake for someone who adores chocolate. It's very easy to make.

If you'd like to join the Barefoot Bloggers in making Ina Garten's recipes, twice a month, please visit their website. Psssssssssssst.... the next person to choose a recipe.... would you choose something that is chocolate free? No more cakes? Well, maybe Ina's Coconut cake? Then again, I'm ready for something with vegetables. My bathroom scale will thank you.

Mary, thanks for choosing this recipe. I love your blog-- what a touching story you have!

NOTE; If you are subscribing to my blog, via Feedburner, please JUMP to my blog to view or print the recipe(s) below.

I am a pathological chocoholic and can't imagine anything chocolate being too rich. I also can't imagine that anything would help me overcome my cravings for chocolate. I saw Ina make this cake and it did look good (though I prefer mousse-y things). Yours looks wonderful. BTW, when I made Ina's brownie pudding it was WAY overcooked.

Thanks for stopping by -- it's such a pleasure to meet someone just up the road a piece! Our cakes look nearly identical, too. I thought this was one of the best chocolate cakes I've ever had, moist and flavorful. Enjoy your weekend!

I am a SERIOUS chocoholic! Maybe I should consider hypnosis. This cake looks crave inducing and perfect with vanilla ice cream. I melt my chocolate in the microwave too, it's just so much easier. And, when I use a raw egg in Caesar or for frosting I don't tell anyone either. I think they enjoy it more if they don't know.

You told me you were making chocolate cake but I didn't know it was *this* chocolate cake. I made this cake about 3 years ago for my MIL's birthday. We all loved it. But I could definitely taste the coffee flavor, which is fine with me because I'm a coffee-a-holic!

oooh...I'm not much of a chocolate cake fan but I LOVE chocolate. But I think with the coffee flavor....omg...that would do it for me for sure!! all of a sudden I'm craving chocolate cake? go figure. YUM

This is gonna sound dumb but I never knew where to get expresso powder. I have looked in grocery store after grocery store and couldn't find it. I would end up using instant coffee because that was the closest I could find. Thanks!

Welcome!

Welcome to my internet kitchen. Please, sit back and relax, and watch me make delicious food and bakery recipes. Most of my recipes are simple, flavorful meals-- and a few baked treats. I focus on using fresh, seasonal ingredients and I try to avoid using boxed mixes and processed foods. I'm having fun learning how to cook like my grandmother once did-- from scratch! I hope that my step-by-step photos will inspire a timid cook to try them. Even if you're a seasoned cook, hopefully you'll learn a new tip or two.

If you have any questions,or just want to say "hello", please feel free to email me: foodiewife@gmail.com

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